Child of the Xenomorph (Blood of Acid Book 1)

This world is not our own. This is something humans have believed so much in since the beginning of time. We believed ourselves to be dominant, to be conquerers of all things. Perhaps that was true on Earth. We ravaged and destroyed and warred for centuries upon centuries, until we reaped what we had sown. Though we were at the very peak of technology, we could not reverse the slow dying of our home world. So expeditions set out. We scoured the galaxy, looking to take root in new soil. Many expeditions went terribly wrong, the ships and colonists falling prey to unspeakable horrors. 
That's when we arrived at Origae-6 at last. Finally, a peaceful, beautiful new world, a blank template for a fresh start. We placed the embryos in would-be-mothers while the colonists set up new homes. Everything was perfect. Until we found the monsters. 

I growled in frustration, vigorously scratching my essay out. I couldn't figure out anything to write for my assignment. It was important to mention the things, but I wasn't able to write about them without-

Even at the mere thought of them, a searing pain split through my head. Come. The word I had come to hate oozed through my head, along with dark thoughts of claws and gnashing teeth. I shook my head vigorously, trying to rid myself of the presence. I could understand the word, but it wasn't it any language I had ever heard of, and understanding it scared me. 

I heard footsteps coming up to my room, and I snapped myself out of it, standing to greet whoever was coming.

The footsteps turned into a pounding knocking at my door, and as I opened it I prayed to whoever was listening it wasn't my cousin. Anyone but my cousin.

To my everlasting despair, the brown haired demon in front of me smiled in sadistic pleasure. 

"Hello, Elle," he said fluidly. His pointed face reminded me of the creatures he studied, save for his piercing blue eyes. Without me inviting him in, he shoved open the door and stalked inside my tiny cabin, his polished boots clicking softly on the smooth ground. He circled me, like a shark eyeing its prey. 

"Hi, Calvis," I said coolly, mustering all of the hate within me so that maybe he could see it in my midnight eyes. I refused to let fear show. The scars on my back already said enough. 

"It's time to come down to see your beasties, witch," he purred, walking over to grab my arm with a false gentleness. I caught a glimpse of the whip I dreaded so much curled around his waist, like the tail of the xenomorphs. At the thought of them I felt a pang of longing, for a reason I couldn't pinpoint. 
Come. The word echoed once again. 

I tried to pull out of his grip, but of course it was to no avail. "Why?" I asked, trying not to let desperation leech into my tone, nearly failing. "You don't need me for your experiments." 

"Oh, but that's precisely what I need you for," he said, grasping my arm tighter. He began tugging me out of my room. "If you don't resist, things will be a lot...easier for you." As if he needed to make his point clearer, his hand drifted down to his wicked whip. My scars sang with the memory of agony at the hand of that instrument. 

"Please, I can't go down there." I didn't know what would happen to me if I got that close to those personifications of darkness. Tears threatened to fall out of my eyes.
Calvis snorted.

"Like I have already said, that is exactly why you are going to go." This time, he yanked my arm so hard I had to bite down a yelp of pain. I made my legs step with his, forcing myself to cooperate.

The halls of the laboratory were shiny and welcoming, an illusion to the demonic things not far from me. The presence in my head grew stronger, feeling like an ugly thing curled up inside of me. Maybe that's how people infected with chestbursters felt. A hideous, powerful presence. 

I tried flashing looks of 'help me' to the passing scientists and soldiers, but as always, they barely paid me a passing glance. Like I would spread my curse to them. So I changed tactics and kept my head down, my ebony hair seemingly absorbing the light around me. 
Another side effect of my curse. My mother was pregnant with me when she was attacked by a facehugger and implanted with a baby xenomorph, a chestburster. Doctors managed to remove me before the chestburster carried out its grisly deed, but were unable to save my mother in time. They say that my flesh was striped with black veins, and nearly disposed of me, until I had shown signs of life. 

All of this I pondered as I trudged toward the pit of despair the scientists kept the aliens. A room of solid stone, something their acid blood was unable to burn through. The scientists kept mine in a similar room, not made of stone but just as confined, cut off from everyone. They gave me useless assignments to test my wit, and assigned my monstrous cousin to inflict pain upon me to see if I had any inhuman defense mechanisms. As if I were nothing more than a lab animal. A yawning pit of hatred opened up within my soul. I wanted to die. And I wanted them all dead. Slow, painful, well deserved deaths. 
I entered an elevator with Calvis, and awaited the dark room the xenomorphs were kept in. It emitted death and agony and all things wicked and dark. I had never seen a real xenomorph, only pictures and drawings. But ever since then I had heard that one word. 

Come. 
Come.
Come.

It battered my brain relentlessly now, growing stronger and more intense with every click the elevator made down to the room. The elevator door shuddered open, and I gasped at what I saw. 

An alarmingly small cell, crammed with the most beautiful, horrible creatures I have ever seen. They had a slightly humanoid stance, but that was where any resemblance to a human ended. Their black muscled bodies were corded with something akin to ridges, or veins. Long spikes protruded from their backs, arching above them in a wicked curve. The tails whipped and sliced around their bodies rapidly, ending in a gleaming point. I could see long glinting claws wrapped around the thick stone bars, grasping for the soft flesh of human prey. 

Most magnificent was the head. A large, smooth cylindrical dome stretching directly backwards, beginning in a snarling maw. One xenomorph in particular was aimed toward me, its black lips curled from its metallic teeth, saliva gushing and pooling onto the ground below. A hissing guttural sound came from it. 

Well done. Instead of being something I thought I could hear, the scraping voice was heard in the back of my head. The pain was gone.

"Well, well, well, what a surprise," Calvis drawled, his scratchy voice cutting through my spiritual moment. "The demons are excited to see the witch." 

He nodded toward his comrades stalking about the cavern, holding hefty weapons. At his nod, the soldiers began shooting the xenomorphs with non lethal bullets. Enough to cause a ton of pain, but not to kill.

The xenomorph's screams immediately filled the cavern. It was soul wrenching. I dropped to my knees as the wails of the creatures grew and grew as the soldiers pumped bullets into them. The wails were not of any animal. No, I heard true anguish and torture, the cries of a sentient being. Tears welled in my eyes. I couldn't let Calvis know this was affecting me. He would know something was wrong and create even worse experiments. 

I stood shakily to my feet. Calvis was eyeing me curiously. 
"Change the bullets to lethal," he said casually. 

I couldn't keep it in anymore as the first gorgeous life was extinguished in a flurry of screams. 

"Stop!" I cried. "Please, there's no point in this!"  

Calvis turned his cruel eyes to me. "Hold your fire!" He called out. 

I couldn't believe he listened to me. "Thank you," I said, choking back another sob. The xenomorphs were growling and hissing, communicating among themselves.

Calvis grabbed my chin out of nowhere, his rank mouth inches from my face. "You don't think these things deserve to die?"

"I think you all deserve to die," I snarled, and spat in his face. 

The punch knocked me out.

I woke up to him whipping my ripped up back. I screamed as the pain lashed through me relentlessly, coming over me in waves and refusing to leave. Calvis left me in a bloody mess, as darkness washed over me again. 

In my dream the xenomorph that had been looking at me earlier held me in its clutches. It whispered a number to me over and over. 4709. 4709. 4709. 

When I woke up again, my clock told me that night had fallen. Everyone would be asleep by now. 

With a groan, I stood up, wincing at the still fresh wounds on my back. I felt the warmth of blood still oozing down my flesh. I shoved the pain away as I shuffled toward my door. They never locked it. I had always been perfectly submissive.

The door opened without the slightest resistance. I snorted softly. They were idiots for
underestimating my motives. 

The walk down the hall was a long, torturous one, but I made it to the elevator. It made a slight creaking noise, and in fear I looked down the darkened hall. To my horror, I heard voices around the corner. 

The elevator went down too slowly and a million times too loud. By the time I reached the bottom, I could hear clamoring voices above me. But it vanished when I saw the xenomorphs. 
They were peaceful now, hissing softly to one another. The dark blue xenomorph that was in my dream was looking at me again, and I could've sworn it nodded at me. I looked around to see if there was anything I could apply the mysterious number to. Over to the right of the cell, there was a glowing passcode lock.

I started to walk over there, hissing through my teeth at the continual pain. Panic seared
through me when I heard the elevator cranking. I stood above the passcode lock.  

Was I really ready to die? I was almost sure that despite my delusions, the xenomorphs
would have no problem killing me. The choice was pounding in me. 

I was ready to die for a greater cause. And especially if the other demons who had tortured me would die in the middle of it.

My choice solid, I punched in the numbers, 4709. 

The doors to the cell clanged open just as the elevator doors opened. To my surprise, the xenomorphs completely ignored me and set upon the men who came in. The men were completely unprepared, and their cries were the most beautiful thing I have ever heard. The dark blue xenomorph stopped in front of me.

Welcome, sister. 

And for the first time in my miserable life, I smiled. 

I could've sworn it smiled back.